Fiona Donnelly

Home to pristine beaches, rugged hinterland and a thriving food scene, Queensland’s Sunshine Coast has the essential ingredients for a memorable getaway.

Tapas are out. Mezze and man’oushe are in.

Heavyweights of Australia's dining scene come to its defence with stories of friendship, success and creativity.

From fish bits, collagen powder found sprinkled in unexpected places, to the fashionable rise of the social non-drinker, this is the year that was.

Opening a restaurant is tough. Building it yourself? That’s another world of pain. Just days before launch, we dropped into the worksite at Pipit, the new NSW North Coast restaurant by chef and handyman Ben Devlin.

Along with rainforests, cane fields and a world-famous reef, Tropical North Queensland has a fresh crop of eateries and bars serving the true taste of the tropics.

The six-month search is over, with a Sydney chef heading north to fill the top job.

We hope you’re ready to play calendar Tetris.

Diving for abalone, visiting farm gates, herding cows and scaring off snakes – it's all in a day's work for these tree-change chefs who've left the bright city lights behind.

There’s no gas or electricity in the kitchen, and everything will be cooked by smoke, embers or flame.